Chris Leben
Chris Leben is a retired middleweight fighter. He was known for his brawling style and his amazing chin and knockout power. Surprise Winning Streak He most recently faced highly-touted and undefeated wrestler Aaron Simpson. He defeated Simpson via spectacular second round technical knockout, despite coming in as a significant underdog. Mere days after defeating Simpson, Wanderlei Silva was forced to pull out of his fight against Yoshihiro Akiyama two weeks before UFC 116 and Leben bravely agreed to replace him on such short notice against the veteran Akiyama. Akiyama and Leben fought a tremendous brawl back and forth with Leben choking Akiyama out with a triangle choke off his back with less than twenty seconds left in the third round even as he was down on the scorecards. Leben was rumored to face Wanderlei Silva for months after his clash with Akiyama. Instead, he faced heavy-hitting former light-heavyweight Brian Stann in January 2011. Stann defeated Leben via a very shocking first-round technical knockout. Leben was sick but didn't count it as an excuse. He next finally got his wish to face Wanderlei. He knocked Wanderlei out twenty-nine seconds into the first round. After the loss, UFC president Dana White indicated that Silva was probably going to be forced to retire. Leben told Wanderlei that he was his hero. In the weeks afterwards, there were many rumors about Leben's next opponent. Names like Demian Maia and even welterweight contender Josh Koscheck were thrown around. Instead, Leben next faced fellow heavy-handed contender Mark Munoz in the first five-round non-title fight in UFC history. Munoz bloodied up Leben's left eye, forcing the doctor stoppage between the second and third rounds. Leben was quoted as saying: "I can't see shit." Leben reportedly cut twenty-one pounds in twenty-four hours before the fight against Munoz, which could explain his apparent lack of effective conditioning. Leben was suspended after failing positive for Oxycodone in his post-fight drug test. After the end of the suspension, Leben next signed to face Karlos Vemola. Vemola was injured and replaced on less than two weeks' notice by newcomer and Strikeforce veteran Derek Brunson. Brunson defeated Leben via a less than exciting unanimous decision. After a bit of a hiatus, Leben seemed in good spirits as he signed to face Texan prospect Andrew Craig. Craig defeated Leben via a pretty dominant split decision. UFC president Dana White said that he thought of Leben as a son and wished he would retire after the three fight losing streak. Instead Leben signed to fight fellow troubled TUF veteran Uriah Hall. Hall handed Leben his fourth straight loss as Leben's corner stopped the fight on Leben's request between the first and second rounds after Leben was knocked out in the last few seconds of round one. Leben officially retired from mixed martial arts a few weeks later in January 2014. Fights *Chris Leben vs. Otto Olson *Chris Leben vs. Bryan Sleeman - Leben came out to the cage with a woman leading another woman by a chain. That wasn't the most bizarre thing to occur in this bout. *Chris Leben vs. Mike Swick - The fight was Mike Swick's first loss. It was for the vacant WEC middleweight title. *Chris Leben vs. Boyd Ballard 2 *Chris Leben vs. Joe Doerksen - It was for the 'Freestyle Fighting Championships' middleweight title haha with Joe Doerksen defending, and a main event. Leben came into the fight undefeated. *Chris Leben vs. Benji Radach - Benji Radach broke his jaw during the fight. *Chris Leben vs. Jason Thacker - The fight was the official UFC debut of both men. *Patrick Cote vs. Chris Leben *Chris Leben vs. Luigi Fioravanti - The fight was Luigi Fioravanti's UFC debut and his first loss. *Jorge Santiago vs. Chris Leben *Jason MacDonald vs. Chris Leben *Chris Leben vs. Alessio Sakara - The fight was light-heavyweight Alessio Sakara's middleweight debut. *Michael Bisping vs. Chris Leben - After the fight, Leben tested positive for steroids and he was suspended for nine months. *Chris Leben vs. Jake Rosholt *Chris Leben vs. Aaron Simpson - Aaron Simpson came into the fight undefeated, and it was his first loss of his career. *Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben - Leben stepped up on two weeks notice to replace an injured Wanderlei Silva. *Brian Stann vs. Chris Leben - The fight was only the second time that iron-chinned Leben had been stopped with punches. *Chris Leben vs. Wanderlei Silva *Mark Munoz vs. Chris Leben - The fight was the first five-round non-title fight in ufc history. *Andrew Craig vs. Chris Leben Quotes * "Every time I turn on Sherdog after a win, it's 'I got lucky' or 'I landed a wild shot.' How many times can I really be lucky? This is my twenty-first fight in the UFC and I'm still around. I must be doing something right." - Chris Leben before his fight with Munoz in England. Category:Middleweight fighters Category:Fight of the Night winners Category:Knockout of the Night winners Category:Retired fighters